Police Say Father Held Child Captive in Florida Home

Police uncovered a horrible case of child abuse. A Jacksonville father is accused of holding his son captive in his home for the past three years. Neighbors finally figured it out after noticing surveillance cameras around the house.

"I'm being wrongly accused."

Those were the words of 41-year-old Randall Piercy who is accused of torturing his nine-year-old son, holding him prisoner in his own Florida home, locked in a bedroom for most of the past three years.

"It appears the Piercy home was a prison," said Annie Smith with the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office.

But Piercy said, "I didn't cage my son."

Jacksonville authorities say Piercy controlled every move his son made, including when he saw his mother and went to the bathroom. The police report says there were cameras in every room, with the father monitoring the boy on television and computer screens.

Smith said, "The child has never attended school, has no friends and has not received medical attention."

Someone who noticed the surveillance cameras in the house brought the situation to the attention of authorities. Neighbors say the Piercys kept to themselves.

"They've lived next to us for seven years," said Connie Parrish. "And we've never seen the child."

Police found the boy in a locked bedroom, dressed only in his underwear. Officials say they couldn't believe how happy he was to be allowed to leave his home.

Smith told reporters, "He (the child) said to our child services interviewer, ‘I have to pinch myself. Days like this only come once in a lifetime.’"

"I'm a loving father," said Piercy.

Piercy and his wife say they thought what they were doing was in the best interest of their son. His father faces aggravated child abuse charges and is being held on a $1 million bond. Police are still investigating the mother's involvement.

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